1. Statement of the Technical Field
The inventive arrangements in this patent disclosure relate to electronic devices, such as hand-held radios, that require one or more microphones or other types of acoustic transducers.
2. Description of the Related Art
The components of many electronic communication devices, such as hand-held land mobile radios, are densely packaged in order minimize their overall dimensions, while maximizing the performance and functionality thereof. The number of suitable mounting locations for acoustic transducers, such as microphones, on such devices is usually limited. In particular, an acoustic transducer generally needs to be mounted on an external face of the device. Moreover, the suitability of a particular face for use in accommodating an acoustic transducer is dependent upon whether the face will be covered during normal use of the device. For example, a face that will be covered by a holster, a coat pocket, or a mounting bracket during normal use of the device is generally an unsuitable location for mounting an acoustic transducer.
Also, technological developments such as active noise cancellation, sound localization, and sound isolation can necessitate the use of arrays of two or more acoustic transducers. The relative locations and the orientations of the acoustic transducers used in such applications are often critical factors in achieving the desired performance from the acoustic-transducer system. The use of multiple acoustic transducers, which need to be positioned in specific relative locations and orientations, is at odds with the limited availability of suitable mounting locations for acoustic transducers on many electronic communication devices.